Visit to Townend: 18th August, 2016

Fifteen members of the Society met at Townend, Troutbeck and were given a short but most interesting talk by Danielle Soper, the House Steward, before being free to view the house room by room.

Danielle explained that the earliest part of the house dates from the seventeenth century and she gave a brief glimpse into the 400 year ownership of the property by the Browne family who were yeomen farmers and eventually farmed just over 800 acres locally.

The house passed into the ownership of The National Trust in 1948 and at the time of our visit essential repairs were nearing completion, during which timbers affected by wet rot had been replaced. The property is very much smaller than most owned by The National Trust but its vernacular features and its furnishings provide an excellent example of a house owned by a relatively wealthy farming family.

The visit preceded the talk to be given to the Society by Emma Wright, the House Manager, on the Browne family and the recipes recorded by Elizabeth Birkett from 1699. She married Ben Browne in 1702 when she came to live at Townend.